Tack-feeding mechanism for button-setting machines.



F E, STANLEY & G. R. LEGGETT. TACK FEEDING MECHANISM FOR BUTTON SETTINGMACHINES.

APPUICATION FILED NOV. I3. 1915. 1,183,24. Patented May 16, 1916.

3 SHEETSSHEET l- .F. E. STANLEY & G. R LEGGETT. TACK FEEDING MECHANISMFOR BUTTON SETTING MACHINES.

Patented MayIG, 1916.

3 SHEETS-SHEEI 2.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 13, 1915- 'rmz COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH c0..\vAsmNu-imi, 6. ti.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3- FJE. STANLEY & G. R. LEGGETT.

TACK FEEDING MECHANISM FOR BUTTON SETTING MACHINES. APPLICATION HL'EDNOV. 13, I9l5.

fi I s raT T ornro.

FREDERICK E. sre LE AND anon-en a. LEGGETT, on WATEIRBURY, CONNECTICUT,

ASSIGNORS T0 SCOVILL MANUFACTURING COMPANY, or WATERBURY, CONNECTI-TACK-FEEDING- MEGHANISM FOR BUTTON-SETTING MACHINES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 16, 1916.

Original application filed May 10,1915, Serial No. 27,042; Divided andthis application filed November 13,

To ail whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, FREDERICK E. STAN- Lnr and GEORGE R. LEGGETT,citizens of the United States, residing at Waterbury, in the county ofNew Haven and State of Connecticut, have invented a certain new anduseful Improvement in Tack-Feeding Mechanism for Button-SettingMachines, of which the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription.

This invention relates to a power machine for setting tack-fastenedbuttons on garments and other articles rapidly and accurately, and moreparticularly to means forming part of such a machine for presenting andpositioning the tack for setting the button.

This case is divided out of our application for patent for buttonsetting machines, filed May 10, 1915, Serial No. 27,042, in accordancewith the requirement of the Patent Office. v

The object of the invention is to provide means for positivelypresenting and positioning the tack and for using the force of gravityonly for delivering the tack to the positioning means and thereby permitthe machine to be run in a practical way at high speed.

The invention consists of a tack-feed comprising a raceway having acut-ofi, a feedtrough adjacent to the delivery end of said raceway and areciprocating slide in said feed-trough for advancing the tack to thesetting mechanism in such way that it is always presented thereto at theproper time relatively to the button feed and in the proper position, aswe will proceed now to explain and finally claim.

In the accompanying drawings illustrating the invention, in the severalfigures of which like parts are similarly designated, Figure 1 is afront elevation of a complete machine embodying the device of this invention. Fig. 2 is a left-hand side elevation of the upper part of themachine. Fig. 3 is a detail in vertical section of parts of the buttonand tack mechanism. Fig. t is a perspective view ofv thetack-positioning slide. Fig. 5 is a horizontal section below themagazines or hoppers, on a larger scale. Fig. 6 is a vertical sectiontaken to the right (Fig. 1) of the setting mecha- Serial No. 61,327.

'n'ism and on a larger scale. Fig. 7 is a sectional elevation of thetack holder and plunger. 'Fig. 8 is an edge view or elevation of oneform of button which the ma chine shown is designed tofset; Fig. 9 is anelevation of a fastening tack, and Fig. 10 1s a cross-section of abutton set on a piece of fabric.

1 is the bed-plate or table, mounted upon 5 legs or frames 2. r,

3 is the main-shaft from which the various moving parts are driven. Thisshaft maybe and preferably is connected with a drive-shaft a by reducinggearing 5 and 6 for the purpose, among others, of running the machine athigh speed. The shaft 4. is

provided with any suitable means, preferconnected with a treadle 13 by arod 14,

but other suitable means may be used for starting and stopping themachine instantly.

The driven parts of the machine derive motion from the main-shaft, aswill appear more fully in the progress of this description, and we havefound that the high speed required-and the necessary. control of themachine are best obtained by applying the power by what is commonlycalled a round belt not directly to the main-shaft 3 but to a drivingshaft 4, and gearing these shafts by a two to one or other desired trainor gears 5, 6, the main-shaft having the stopping and startingmechanism'applied to it.

The button magazine or hopper15 and the tack magazine or hopper 16 aremounted upon the head in any suitable manner, and

at any suitable angle, and so as to be capable of being turned to effectthe discharge of their contents. Preferably these magazines have theirshafts 17 and 18 respectively extended rearwardly and supplied withbandpulleys 19 and 20 respectively, which are fast on their shafts andare connectedby the I band 21, so as to turn in the same direction. Theshaft 17 is driven by a pulley 22 connected by a band 23 passing overdirection idlers 2i and 25 to a driving pulley 26 on the main-shaft. Thepulley 22 is loose on shaft 17 and carries a pawl 27 which engages aratchet 28 fast on shaft 17. The button hopper or magazine is loose onits shaft but is held frictionally to turn with it by any suitablemeans, such as the spring 29 and the washers 30, which latter are keyedto turn with the shaft and the nut 31. By these means the button andtack magazines may be turned by hand, independently of the drivingpulley 22, so as to remove obstacles and provide for emergency filling,and the filling of the-raceways leading from the magazines to thesetting devices, whenever they become empty or insufficiently filled.The tack hopper may be secured to its shaft in any suitable way to turnwith it as desired, and we have shown a nut 82 as the means forretaining it upon its shaft.

The buttons are discharged from the mag azine into a raceway 38depending therefrom, with their hubs outermost, and must be turned forsetting purposes, so as to present their hubs lowermost and vertically.

The lowerend of the raceway is intercepted transversely by areciprocating cut-ofi 84, actuated by a rock-lever 35 pivoted on thehead of the machine, a connecting link 36, a spring 37 and a cam 38 onthe main-shaft,

to deliver one button at a time, and below this cut-off is an offsetraceway 39 which opens into a transversely arranged casing 40, in whichis arranged the button-turner that receives the button edgewise from the"raceway'and gives it a quarter turn so as to present its hub verticallydownward. This turner comprises a cylindrical piece 41, having adiametrical opening or slot 12 at one end, of a size sufiicient toreceive 2 the button edgewise, and it is provided with circumferentialspur-teeth 13 outside of the casing which are engaged by a toothed rack44' on a longitudinally reciprocating bar 45 mounted in the headof themachine at the rear of the turner and actuated by a cam 46 on the.cam-carrier 4C7 fast on the main shaft, and a spring 48. By this meansthe turner is turned with its opening vertical to receive a buttonedgewise from the raceway and then it is turned a quarter turn so as tomove the button from a vertical to a horizontal position with its hubdown and in theposition it must have in order to be set. The turnerpiece 41 is bored longitudinally and in this bore is mounted a stem 49having the transverse head 50 curved on its face to conform to thecurvature of .the rim of the button-head. The stem projects outof thetoothed end of the turner device and its head works in the opening orslot 42. The stem is provided with an adjustable grooved collar 51 whichis engaged by a tracker pin on a shifter lever 52 pivoted on the head ofthe machine and having a cam roller engaged by a cam 53 on themain-shaft, so that when the machine is running the stem and its headwill be given a longitudinal reciprocating movement in the turningdevice to eject the turned or oted spring or other effective latch 55 engaging a slotted keeper projection 56 on the casing.

The buttons are delivered, one at a time, to the spring closed fingers57, mounted upon the side of the head and having their lower ends 58turned toward the turner last described. These fingers are hinged toether at their upper ends so as to be capable of parting or separatingat their inturned lower ends to permit the movement there through of thevertically reciprocating setting anvil 59 and the discharge therefrom ofthe button being set, and these fingers are held in operative relationby a spring 60. The inturned ends of the fingers are undercut at theirouter portions transversely to the vertical anvil passage, to form apocket 61, of substantially the profile of the button, into which thebuttons are successively v ejected by the ejector, and by means of thispocket the button is held in the fingers against the possibility as wellof misplacemcnt as of accidental displacement. The fingers are held inlongitudinally sliding engagement with the head by a screw 62, the headof which is large enough to overlap the fingers at their greatestlateral separation in operation. The upper portions of the fingers arecut away to form an intermediate slot 68 and into this slot projects apin 64 fast on the anvil. Above the pin is an adjustable springadjusting device 65 on the fingers, to adjust the finger-ends to theturner and take up any shock. The anvil 59 in its descent comes intocontact with the finger-ends and carries said fingersdown with it untilsaid fingers reach the limit of their downward movement, which isdetermined by the relation of the screw 62 to the slot 66 between thefingers in which it is arranged. Thefinger-ends are moved by the anvilinto a position lower than that of the turner, and then the furtherdescent of the anvil and its consequent ejection of the button cams thefingers apart under resistance of their spring, and the button is inposition to be set. After the button is set the anvil is retracted andas it rises and the to normal button-receiving relation to the turnerand ejector. This'return movement 7 of the fingers is arrested by thebottom of the slot 66 coming into contact with the emergencyfinger-opening cam lever 67 This cam-lever 67 is pivoted to the head soas to operate within the slot 66 to separate the fingers wheneverdesired. When in this position the turner opening or slot42 is inhorizontal alinemcnt with the pocket 61 in the finger-ends and theejector is in positifon to eject the button from the turner" into thepocket in the fingers.

The anvil may be operated by any suitable means, such as a bell-cranklever 68 mounted in the head and connected with the anvil by a link 69,the lever-1 68 being actuated by a connecting rod. 70 extending thencerearwardly and forked to straddle the main-shaft and having a camrroller71 engaged. by a cam 72 fast on said main-shaft which imparts a compoundlongitudinal and rising and falling motion to the connecting rod and arocking motion to the bell-crank lever 68.

The tack magazine has a raceway 7 3 made with a twist so as to receivethe tack heads on edge from the magazine and turn the tacks point upbefore they reach the cutoff 74. This cut-ofi has two fingers 75 havingtheir tips 76 extending toward one another across the raceway, and thesefingers are fast on a rock-lever 77 pivoted on the back of the racewayand connected by a rod 78 with a vibrating arm 79 pivoted at 80 to thehead and having a cam-roller 81 engaging a cam 82 fast on themain-shaft. In order to prevent breaking of parts in the event ofjamming the raceway or cut-off, the rod 78 has a coil 83 formed in it toserve as a spring which will yield under such jamming and thus'preventbreaking any of the parts. The rock-lever 77 and its fingers 75 may bereturned to position by a spring 84 fastened to said lever by one endand to the head by the other. The tacks are delivered one by one, headdown, to a feedtrough 85 arranged in the head beneath and in line withthe anvil, and in this feed trough is a slide 86 having the pair ofparal-.

lel fingers 87 to straddle the tack point above the back of the head,and undercut to afford a recess 88 to receive the head of the tack andpush the tack forward, and an upstanding fin 89 to keep the tack pointupright. This slide constitutes the tack ejector. The slide isreciprocated in the feed-trough by means of a bell-crank 90 pivoted onthe machine head and having one arm connected by a link 91 with anupstanding lug 92 on the slide, and another arm provided with acam-roller 93 engaging a cam 94 fast on the main-shaft. The tack ejectoreliver the tack :to. fingers 95 pi ote to th head adjacent to thesetting die. or plunger 6, hes fingers being yie ding y con c e a y ahow spring A st p 98vprevent -t scape of t e tack and a se v to positionit on the plunger.

The p ung r 9 i ver cal y re p oe i the head a d betwee he yie d ngfingers 95 by a bell crank lever 99 pivotally mountedinan' extension ofthe head beneath t e b dplate and connecte with. t plunger by link 100,and having a connect ingrod 101 provided with a forked end hich s raddls h main aft and is; pro- J vided with a cam roller 102 engagedby a' cam103, fast on the main shaft.

We have herein referred' flwthe cams 82,

. 94 and 103. as though each were a separate structure, as they 'may be,but they are herein shown as combined in one structure.

These and other details of construction and operativeparts are 'ariableat the pleasure of the machine builder, so long as the efie'ctivecooperation and coordination of parts are concernedand the principle ofthe invention followed Again, it is to. be noted that we have describedthe button turner in broad terms, but in or er to i lustrate a suitableturner we have shown in the drawingsone form, which comprises thecylindrical piece 41 having a reduced portion 104 next to the teeth 43and fitted in a sleeve 105 having a rear extension 106 fixed to the backof the casing, as by screws 107. This cylindrical piece is held in thecasing and sleeve by the collar 108 fixed to the reduced portion 104outside the sleeve. The casing in this instance is a part of or attachedto the lower end of the button raceway. The teeth 43 may be cut in thepiece 41 as shown, or otherwise provided.

The operation would appear to be sufficiently indicated in and by theforegoing. However, it may be briefiy stated that, the respectivemagazines being supplied with buttons and tacks and the machine started,the buttons and tacks are fed one by one to their respective deliverypoints. The article to be supplied with buttons, represented at 109,Fig. 10, is passed by the operator between the anvil and plunger andarrested momentarily beneath the anvil. The tack 110 is first positionedover the plunger, point up, and held by the fingers 95, and the tackejector recedes to take its place for the next tack. Then a button 111is righted, transferred to the pocket in the fingers 57 and carried downby the fingers and anvil toward the tack and the plunger is caused toascend and pass the tack point through the article Copies of this patentmay be obtained for tions repeated. The spring fingers yield in thedirection of movement of the article and thus offer no obstacle to therelease of the set tack, but rather facilitate'it.

As already sufliciently indicated, the invention contemplates suchchanges as will meet the requirements of the user, the kind or type ofbutton-to be set, and the kind or type of tack or fastener.

For a further detail illustration of the construction of the buttonturner and of the fingers 57, reference is made to the parent casehereinbefore referred to, and for the claims for said button turner,reference is made to our concurrent divisional application of even date,Serial No. 61,326.

What We claim is I 1. In a button setting machine, a tacksupplyingmechanism, including a hopper, a raceway leadingtherefrom, a cut-off todischarge tacks one at a time from said raceway, a feed trough arrangedadjacent to the delivery end of the raceway and adapted to receive thetacks from said raceway, and a tack ejector slidably arranged in saidfeed trough and having its leading end adapted to engage a tack and moveit forward through said feed trough into position to be set and alsohaving an upstanding fin in the rear of said leading end to keep thetack point upright while the tack is being moved forward, means toreciprocate said tack ejector in said feed trough, and means to receivethe tack from said ejector and position it for setting.

2. In a button setting machine, a tack supplying mechanism, including ahopper, a raceway leading therefrom, a cut-off to discharge tacks one ata time from said raceway, a feed trough adjacent to the delivery end ofthe raceway, and a reciprocating slide operating in said feed troughhaving terminal fingers adapted to straddle the tack point, an undercutrecess below the fingers to receivethe head of the tack and anupstanding fin back of the terminal fingers to hold the tack pointupright.

In testimony whereof we have hereunto set our hands this 10th day ofNovember A. D. 1915.

FREDERICK E. STANLEY. GEORGE R. LEGGET'I.

'VVitnesses PERCY VARNER, E. A. HYDE.

five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of latexits Washington,D. C.

